N-A-A Chapter 158
Chapter 158
Chen Hao watched Lin Feng's actions, his gaze lingering on his face for a moment before shifting away.
At 7:10, the three of them arrived at the training hall.
The training hall was huge, with two standard basketball courts side by side, the wooden floor polished so smooth you could see your reflection. The basketball hoops were hydraulically adjustable, much more advanced than those at the sports school. Tactical boards, scoreboards, and a huge national flag—red with a five-pointed star in the upper left corner, covering the entire wall—were displayed on the surrounding walls.
There were already more than a dozen people on the court; some were shooting, some were stretching, and some were chatting. Lin Feng glanced around and found that almost everyone was taller than him, the shortest being over 1.85 meters. There was a center standing under the basket, who looked to be over 2.05 meters tall, standing there like a wall.
Gao Yuan leaned closer and lowered his voice. "That guy, 2.05 meters tall, his name is Sun Hao, he plays center. He's a local from the provincial capital, has a bad temper, don't mess with him."
Lin Feng followed his gaze. Sun Hao was practicing his hook shot under the basket. His movements were slow, but his ball control was excellent. The ball slipped from his fingertips, grazed the backboard, and gently fell into the hoop. His face was expressionless, as if he were performing a routine task.
"That one," Gao Yuan pointed in another direction, to a tall man doing stretches, with long legs and arms, his movements very fluid, "Liu Yang, small forward, 1.98 meters tall, can dunk with both hands hanging over the rim. Provincial youth team's top scorer."
Lin Feng remembered those two names.
Chen Hao didn't speak, but silently walked to a corner and began to stretch his legs. He placed one leg on the barre and slowly leaned forward, his forehead almost touching his knee. He was very flexible and his movements were very large, unlike the big guys Lin Feng usually saw.
Lin Feng also walked to the side and began to warm up.
He jogged a few laps first, then stretched—his hamstrings, front of his thighs, calves, shoulders, wrists, and ankles. This was a fixed routine that Sun Jianguo taught him, done in the same order and with the same number of repetitions every day, without ever slacking off.
While he was stretching, he heard someone talking behind him.
"Have you heard? A new person has arrived in Kitagawa."
"Beichuan? There are basketballs there?"
"I don't know. I heard they've only been training for three months."
"Three months? Are you kidding me? What level can you possibly reach in three months?"
The people speaking didn't lower their voices, or rather, they didn't care at all about being heard.
Lin Feng didn't turn around. He continued stretching, right leg, left leg, then stood up and moved his wrists. After rotating his wrists a few times, his knuckles cracked twice, like the echo of pebbles being dropped into an empty bucket.
Gao Yuan walked up to him without him noticing.
"Ignore them," Gao Yuan said in a low voice. "The veteran players are all like that; they always have to say something sarcastic when a newcomer comes along."
Lin Feng nodded. "It's nothing."
Coach Li arrived at 7:30.
He was wearing a gray sports T-shirt, black sports pants, a whistle around his neck, and a black notebook in his hand. When he entered the stadium, everyone automatically stopped talking; those shooting hoops put down their balls, those stretching stood up, and those chatting shut their mouths.
The entire venue fell silent, with only the hum of the air conditioners remaining.
"Assemble." Coach Li's voice wasn't loud, but every word was clear.
Everyone stood in a row. They were arranged by height, with the shortest on the left and the tallest on the right. Lin Feng stood on the far left—he was the shortest person there.
Coach Li walked around from left to right, his gaze sweeping across each person's face.